The 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) is currently defining parameters for the provision of dual connectivity to User Equipment (UE) of a mobile device in a Long Term Evolution (LTE) communication network. The evolved architecture of the LTE network comprises an Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access Network (E-UTRAN) on the access network side and an Evolved Packet Core (EPC) on the core network side.
In dual connectivity, the UE consumes radio resources provided by at least two different network access points (Master and Secondary eNBs) connected via a non-ideal backhaul (where eNB refers to an Evolved Node B network access point in the LTE network). The Master (or Macro) eNB (MeNB) is the eNB which hosts the Radio Resource Control (RRC) layer and terminates S1-MME (reference point for the control plane protocol between E-UTRAN and a Mobility Management Entity (MME)), and which therefore acts as a mobility anchor towards the Core Network (CN). The Secondary (or Small) eNB (SeNB) is an eNB which provides additional radio resources for the UE. The eNB configured as an SeNB for a given UE can also be operated as a typical cell (i.e., single connectivity) for standalone UEs.
The current 3GPP security framework defines secure operation between the UE and one point of attachment, i.e., between the UE and one eNB. However, there is no existing security solution for simultaneous connection of the UE to multiple cells.